ABSTRACT
The US public could point to generals and diplomats in Europe who had secretly longed for, and schemed for, that war. Treaties negotiated by diplomats behind closed doors had made for a mechanism that, in the end, had made this war occur as if by necessity. They had left in the dark the public who then had to pay a high price for the arrogance and insolence of their ambassadors and generals. Immediately after the World War I, the anti-elitists had the upper hand. Diplomacy had to be in public view. International covenants should be "open and openly arrived at." Democratic governments try to sway public opinion to support their policies. The US public was successful, in forcing the US government to withdraw its military from Vietnam and to concede victory to the Communists. The public as such is also less likely than elites to be swayed by lobbies that have a heightened interest in this or that issue.
